


Now I Know How It Feels To Be Caught In A Riptide

by LostintheMaze



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Summer
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-23
Updated: 2020-07-23
Packaged: 2021-03-05 06:33:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,457
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25429969
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LostintheMaze/pseuds/LostintheMaze
Summary: The beach is - was - their happy place. Their quiet haven away from their weekday lives. She would read her book while laying on the sand, and he was her only passer by as he splashed through the surf on his run. The world was at peace, until summer hit.Now Rey and Ben find themselves being attacked by volleyballs and frisbees on a weekly basis. The balls and discs are usually accompanied by some twenty-something college student who wants to do far more than make sure they're okay. The only solution they've found so far is to make sure every young person in their vicinity thinks they're taken. What could be so wrong with faking a romance to get back some semblance of their routine peace? It solves both their problems. Well, most of them. It doesn't stop the sound of Katy Perry's California Gurls echoing in both their heads long after they've left the shore.But summer doesn't last forever. Each weekend is another closer to September and the end to their problems. Will it also be the end of Ben and Rey's arrangement, or will it lead to more?[FYI this may turn to an Explicit rated fic in the future]
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 2
Kudos: 5
Collections: Summer Fic Exchange 2020





	Now I Know How It Feels To Be Caught In A Riptide

**Author's Note:**

  * For [dyadinbloom](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dyadinbloom/gifts).



> Prompt - FAKE/PRETEND RELATIONSHIP. Ben and Rey have their individual routines at the beach they live near: Rey likes to soak up the sun and read a book, and Ben likes to go for barefoot runs in the damp surf. Unfortunately, vacationing beach-goers don't get the memo that these two like their quiet time, so after watching the other get frustrated by strangers' attempts at flirtation, they decide to make sure everyone knows they're Taken with a capital T. What starts as an overtly touchy feely fake romance turns into a beautiful friendship built on shared reading tastes and opposite exercise routines.
> 
> Thanks for the amazing prompts dyadinbloom! I struggled to pick a prompt from the selection you gave me, but this was the one in the end. I'm hoping to get this rolling as a longer fic for you, but we'll see how that goes in the long run. 
> 
> Thinking about summer reminded me of summer 10 years ago when all anyone played was Katy Perry's California Gurls. What better way to bring Ben and Rey together than a mutual hatred of the song and flirtatious college students?
> 
> Hope you and everyone enjoy!

* * *

**Saturday 8th** **May 2010**

* * *

Rey loved the weekends, especially when spring was just blending into summer. The blossoms had scattered petals across the ground weeks ago, making way for the sun’s heat to soak through the sky. It was comfortably warm laying on her towel on the sand, its edges frayed from years of trips to the beach.

Her eyes slipped closed as she basked in the heat, focusing on the ambient sounds of gulls in the distance and waves lapping at the shore. Her thumb strummed along the pages of a well-worn copy of The Secret Garden, content to feel the softness of old pages. Maybe she would lift the book to read in a minute. Maybe she would lay here today and enjoy the kisses of the sun on her face and the smooth sand between her bare feet. The day was hers, and no one could take that away from her.

What felt like hours later, the first sign of company came in the splash of feet in the surf. A steady heartbeat of strides adding to the soundtrack of Rey’s morning.

Using her book to shield her eyes first, she peeled a lid back to see who else was there. It was a familiar face, although she wouldn’t be able to tell you his name. He was dressed in his usual attire of loose shorts and white cotton t-shirt as he ran barefoot through the hiss of sea foam and damp sand. He offered Rey a quick quirk of his mouth and a nod as he passed, their usual greeting. She pushed up onto her elbows before returning the smile, and saluted him with the book at her brow. Then he went on his way, kicking up spray behind him as Rey watched him go.

She’d been visiting the beach for a few years now, but this running man was a new addition to her routine. Ever since the weather had brightened mid-spring, Rey had taken herself down to the beach just after sunrise, sometimes just before, and had managed to have the stretch of sand to her own until almost 10AM each Saturday. This year was different. He was now her brief companion in the two minutes he passed by at precisely 9:45AM every Saturday morning. Rey had enjoyed her solitude every other year, but something about seeing a familiar face each week like clockwork improved her day, if only a little.

Once the dark-haired stranger had become a speck in the distance of the vast shoreline, Rey lay back with a gentle sigh and let her eyes slip closed once more. Her body moulded into the sand, limbs relaxing into the space the ground made for her.

If only every Saturday could be as beautifully simple as this.

* * *

**Saturday 12th** **June 2010**

* * *

The beach could not be more different to a month ago. The quiet solitude followed by the odd family playing in the surf turned into a riot of noise that burst from young adults and teenagers from all the neighbouring towns and cities. Boys clinked beer bottles and erupted in cheers every few minutes as they hit volleyballs with hard fists. Girls giggled and screamed as boys threw them into the sea, some joining in with the drinking and volleyball games. All of them thoroughly enjoyed one song which Rey had learned to hate with all her heart: California Gurls by Katy Perry.

Rey groaned as she lost the line she was reading once again as a spray of sand showered her and her towel. Another gang of young adults raced to the volleyball court, shouting and laughing as they went. Some days, Rey wished she was young and carefree. She wished her only worries were reputation, college and having fun, but that had never been her and never would be.

She couldn’t understand why they were out on the beach at 9:30AM. She certainly wouldn’t have been if she was as burden-free as they were. Didn’t most people their age party into the night and roll out of bed when the sun arced high in the sky? Maybe things were different now. Although it did seem like some of the teens had fallen asleep on the beach the night before, unlabelled glass bottles strewn around them in place of the usual smooth stones and shells.

They were entertaining to watch though, Rey had to admit to herself. She let her book fall onto her stomach, adding to the hundreds of creases that ran like veins across the spine. Her eyes followed a group of young people staggering towards the toilet block, curious stare hidden behind the veil of sunglasses. It looked as if one of them was about to throw up. Rey’s shoulders shook with silent laughter, a smirk curving her lips. They would learn… maybe. Hopefully they would learn to play better music, at least.

A moment later, a gaggle of girls wearing a rainbow of bikinis swarmed around a patch of sand near the ocean. One tossed a neon pink frisbee to another, the ocean breeze curving it through the air. Rey watched the disk as it flew from hand to hand. They all seemed pretty good at it, especially considering they were most likely hungover behind those oversized shades. Except when one girl threw the frisbee so off course it was almost comical, almost purposeful. It soared through the air, aiming towards the ocean, dipping lower towards the waves. Rey was certain it was going to get swept away in the surf if it carried on its current trajectory, but the girls didn’t seem to care about the frisbee’s course, only its destination.

The thud of plastic meeting the running man’s skull echoed, adding an off-time thump to the bass of the music.

“Oh my god!” The girl who threw the frisbee gasped and ran over to Rey’s only constant on this beach. “I’m so sorry.”

“It’s fine.” It was the first time Rey had heard his voice. Even muffled by the music, it carried to her ears easily.

The girl’s hand fell to his bicep, just below the sleeve of his shirt. “What if you’re hurt? I’d feel awful if it bruised.” Her other hand drifted to the runner’s forehead, brushing over the spot where the frisbee had hit. “Let me at least put some ice on it.”

Rey almost convinced herself she could feel a breeze from how much the girl’s eyelashes were fluttering. 

“No, it’s okay,” he insisted, brushing the girl’s hand away from his face. 

“Well, I’m Ashley,” she said, placing her body in front of his. She blocked his way across the shoreline. She blocked his way past Rey where he would give her a brief wave as always. Rey checked her watch. It was already 9:50AM. He would have usually passed her by now, a speck in the distance. 

“Thank you for your concern, Ashley, but I have to be on my way,” he replied. Rey wasn’t sure if she was imagining his jaw clenching in irritation. She couldn’t be sure from her current spot on the sand, but she almost wished it was. Ashley was interrupting their weekly routine. Rey was unsure why that made her so uneasy. It was just a wave and a smile, nothing more. Yet it was everything because it was their routine, it was Rey’s normal. 

“Here,” Ashley pulled her phone from the bag cinched around her waist. “At least give me your number so I can make sure you’re okay.” Rey could see the shock of white teeth that split through the tan of Ashley’s skin as the runner took the phone into his hands. He appeared to tap his digits into the device before handing it back to her with barely a quirk of his mouth.

“I’m sure I’ll be okay.” With a curt nod, he swerved around Ashley. His face was set in stone today as his feet pounded past Rey’s, the splash of the sea matching Rey’s heartbeat pounding in her ears. He didn’t even glance her way today. He didn’t lift his hand in greeting, only passed by stone-faced. 

Rey’s stomach dropped, sinking into the sand until it was cold. She didn’t even know the guy or his name, but she enjoyed their brief interactions each week. It stung that he wouldn’t even nod her way as he passed. It’s not like she’d moved spots or changed her sunglasses since last week. She was a constant for him, just as much as he was for her. 

With a sigh, Rey slumped back onto the sand. A part of her wished the sand would slither around her and pull her slowly into its depths. Maybe she would disappear for a while down there, away from Ashley’s flirtatious touches on his arm, the laughs of young people and the whine of Katy Perry’s voice as California Gurls echoed from every corner of the beach. 

A tsunami of sand across her stomach briefly made Rey wonder if her wish was coming true, until a shadow loomed over her. 

“I’m so sorry.” 

Rey almost felt a sense of deja vu. She had heard those words spoken across the beach only minutes ago, except this voice was deeper. Not as deep as the running man’s though.

“It didn’t hit you, did it?” The voice said again, prompting Rey to prop herself up on her elbows. 

“Just sprayed me with sand,” she replied, dusting the grains off her stomach where they didn’t stick to her suncream. 

Rey looked up at the stranger when he didn’t move away. He towered over her, a pillar of tanned skin and muscle pulled taut over a scaffold of bone. His shoulders were broad, built for barging into players on a football field. Ray Bans covered his eyes until he pushed them atop his head into hair bleached blond by the sun. 

“Let me buy you a drink.” He offered Rey his hand, smooth and uncalloused. “I can apologise to you properly that way.” 

Rey paused. Usually, she would say no. Today wasn’t usual though. Her routine had been interrupted the moment Ashley had hit the still nameless runner Rey had always waved at. 

“Okay,” she replied and stood abruptly. “Just one.” 

Rey leaned over to pack her belongings, shaking her towel free of sand before folding it over her beach bag. 

“I’m Kyle, by the way.” He offered Rey a charming curve of his lips. It wasn’t the same as the usual smile she saw on a Saturday morning, but it would suffice for now. 

“Rey,” she replied with a nod. “We can go to the beach bar over there.” If she was doing this, it was going to be her way, and well away from the prying eyes of Maz in the convenience store closest to Rey’s spot.

“Okay,” Kyle said, and they started their trek over the sand. 

Rey heard a raucous of cheers as she walked with Kyle to the bar. Maybe someone had made a good shot at volleyball, or downed their beer exceptionally quick. She had to stop herself rolling her eyes and questioning her current decision to get a drink with one of the youths who had aided in the California Gurls infused nightmare Rey had been living the last couple of weekends.

“So, where do you study?” Kyle asked.

Rey arched an eyebrow at him. “I don’t study. Not anymore.”

“Oh.” Kyle’s face was a mask; his tone a mystery. Rey couldn’t tell what thoughts were swimming inside the boy’s head.

“I work,” Rey continued. “I graduated college a few years ago.”

“Nice,” Kyle nodded, his hand brushing hers as they approached a pair of stools in the busy bar area. “Let me guess…” He looked her up and down, his leer lingering on Rey’s sand-spotted stomach. “Definitely an arts degree kinda girl, Rey.”

“Software engineering,” Rey retorted, eyebrow arched. “No arts aside from what I needed to pass.”

“Impressive.” Kyle slid onto his stool as Rey did the same. He leaned in closer as Rey’s attention strayed to placing her bag on the floor. “Brains and beauty, it seems.”

Rey flushed. She’d never entertained any of the college boys who threw volleyballs and frisbees her way until now. She wasn’t sure if she would regret changing that habit now, although it was nice to receive a compliment on her looks from someone who seemed sober.

“Two beers,” Kyle called over to the bartender, slipping Rey out of her thoughts. Alcohol wasn’t what she’d usually go for on a Saturday morning, but her routine had been broken already. What would one bottle hurt?

The cool bottle was a comfort in her hand when it arrived. Rey lifted her chin as she turned to Kyle, presenting a facade of confidence that she’d never had to bring forth before.

“Just here for the weekend, Kyle?” Rey asked.

“The whole summer,” he replied after taking a swig of his beer. “So you might see me around more often, Rey.”

Rey sipped her beer to distract herself, not sure what to say in response. What was she getting herself in for by entertaining this boy? “Are you from around here then?” Rey asked, praying for him to say no.

Fortunately, Kyle shook his head. “I’ve got a gig lifeguarding at the pool at the Corellian Inn a couple miles away. So I mostly get to sit around and tan. Would be nice to see more women like you around the pool, that’s for sure.”

Rey pushed her tongue against the roof of her mouth as she formulated her next reply. “It’s not a bad summer job to have. I used to lifeguard when I was in college to-” ‘ _make ends meet’_ Rey almost found herself saying. Kyle was already taking a swig of his beer, almost draining the bottle of its amber contents.

“I’m sure you were a popular lifeguard, Rey.” She could have sworn he winked, but maybe it was a trick of the light, the sun high in the sky behind his head. It was as if a halo had appeared around his face. “I wouldn’t have minded if you’d have saved my life.”

The halo of light circling Kyle’s face dimmed, even though no clouds were around. It took Rey a moment to realise he was getting closer, eyes dipping to her lips as her beer thudded against the bar.

“I should be going,” Rey blurted out. She launched herself off the stool, too hasty in her escape. Now it was the floor getting closer to her face, her foot pinching against the leg of her bar stool.

A hand grasped her arm, halting her fall a heartbeat later.


End file.
